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Obama, in low demand, suits up for governor races

FILE - This Oct. 1, 2014, file photo shows President Barack Obama leaving the White House to board the Marine One helicopter in Washington. With a week left before Election Day, Obama is picking some temperate spots to visit in an otherwise chilly political landscape. He will be campaigning in six states, Wisconsin, Michigan, Maine, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, betting that his last-minute appeals will mobilize core Democratic voters who have a history of sitting out midterm elections. For Democrats and for the White House, it’s the strategy with the lowest risk. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
FILE - This Oct. 1, 2014, file photo shows President Barack Obama leaving the White House to board the Marine One helicopter in Washington. With a week left before Election Day, Obama is picking some temperate spots to visit in an otherwise chilly political landscape. He will be campaigning in six states, Wisconsin, Michigan, Maine, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, betting that his last-minute appeals will mobilize core Democratic voters who have a history of sitting out midterm elections. For Democrats and for the White House, it’s the strategy with the lowest risk. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File) FILE - This Oct. 1, 2014, file photo shows President Barack Obama leaving the White House to board the Marine One helicopter in Washington. With a week left before Election Day, Obama is picking some temperate spots to visit in an otherwise chilly political landscape. He will be campaigning in six states, Wisconsin, Michigan, Maine, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, betting that his last-minute appeals will mobilize core Democratic voters who have a history of sitting out midterm elections. For Democrats and for the White House, it’s the strategy with the lowest risk. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

By Associated Press 1 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) – In the final days of the midterm campaign President Barack Obama is campaigning for Democratic governor candidates and avoiding hostile Senate terrain where Democrats see him more as a liability.

Obama is fanning out to campaign in six states this week, betting that his last-minute appeals will mobilize core Democratic voters who have a history of sitting out midterm elections.

Each of the states – Wisconsin, Michigan, Maine, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Pennsylvania – went for Obama in his two presidential elections. That’s in sharp contrast to the closest Senate races, most of which are in states Obama lost and where he remains highly unpopular.

Democratic governor candidates also are better shielded from Obama’s policies than Democratic candidates for Senate, whose votes could directly advance the president’s agenda.